


like a thousand suns

by newheros



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Childhood Friends, Feelings Realization, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Prom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-09 03:12:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15258156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/newheros/pseuds/newheros
Summary: somewhere along all the stolen kisses under the bleachers and the eternal bickering over silly things, love has find it easy making a home for herself in the space between their interlocked pinky fingers.alternatively and less dramatically, it's the last year of school and ten plans on asking johnny to prom. the rest is history.





	like a thousand suns

**Author's Note:**

> "HIGH HOMOSEXUALITY LEVEL" (lano, 2018)
> 
> inspired, obviously, by /that/ vlive, but along the way i just wanted to write about jungwoo in suits. the rest came naturally, as you'll see.
> 
> for plot purposes, consider:  
> \- ten, johnny, jungwoo, doyoung and yuta are seniors  
> \- jaehyun and winwin are juniors  
> \- lucas is a sophomore and renjun is a freshman  
> \- the school year starts in february because *shrugs* easier for me. that being said, this starts around march, while prom is in december. don't worry much about it, though
> 
> title is from "your surrender" by neon trees, and this was written while listening to the amazing playlist lano made for me, which you can listen to [here](https://open.spotify.com/user/catrpillars/playlist/2ueoIEgmX3nUZiB6LabYN3?si=V6qTxbF0RZWpnIIu9lzc8A)
> 
> nevertheless, thank you so much, reader, for being here. i hope you enjoy reading this as much as i did writing it. shall we?
> 
> btw im sorry about the typos. as i said, i wrote this instead of sleeping

It's a rainy, ugly afternoon and they're standing in a minuscule changing room, with Jungwoo's legs clad in the navy blue trousers Ten had found for him and Doyoung fumbling with the buttons of his cream shirt – which is too big, but he won't listen to any of them until, later on, Jaehyun tells him he looks like a baby duck when Doyoung shows him the picture –, when Ten finally drops his phone on his lap and says, "I'm going to ask Johnny Seo to prom,"

Jungwoo squeaks, and his socks slide on the slippery floor a little as he tries not to topple over him. He looks down at Ten, who got tired of changing in and out of suits some time ago and decided just to sit there, and squeaks again. "What! You're ditching me for the jock!"

"For all I know," Ten replies, matter-of-factly, "Doie did it first and way more in style than I could ever dream of,"

He's not lying. Their tradition of going to prom as a trio – because one of them always ended up being invited, and dragged the others along – was fated to crumble, since Doyoung started going out with one of the school's soccer stars last summer. After, you know, Jaehyun puked on his shoes at a party and Doyoung, instead of being mad, decided he was going to marry him.

Love at first shitface, as their friend Yuta kindly says.

"First of all, don't mention the puke incident. Secondly, you can't blame for going to prom with my boyfriend," says Doyoung as he leans back on the wall opposite to the mirror. Ten smiles, and adds "Also, it's not like you're going to end up all alone, Jungwoo. Didn't that kid Lucas ask you to prom last week? We're all going to ditch each other for the jocks, after all,"

Besides proudly calling himself a confident gay, the tips of Jungwoo's ears turn bright red, and his recently cut dark blonde hair fails in hiding it. Ten doesn't think it has to do with the light of the changing room, so he just picks his phone again and lets Jungwoo deal with himself alone, as he likes it. "Yes, but that's not the point," the latter replies, voice barely a whisper. He squirms out of his trousers and ends up kicking Ten's shin by accident. Or not. "And he wasn't supposed to ask me-- it's _my_ prom. So I just winked, and he fell from the bleachers, and I never heard of him again. He might as well have died, and I'm going to end up alone at prom,"

"You're not," Ten reassures him, shrugging. "Besides, I'm not even sure Johnny's gonna say yes, so I can still go with you in the end,"

Jungwoo looks outraged. "Don't jinx it before you even get to ask, Jesus. Go get your emo jock god before I snatch him myself. I'm not dumb, you know..."

 

Like all things related to Ten, he manages to make it more difficult than it should be.

It's not the challenge per se that drives him in, but how Ten likes it better with a dose of thrill. That's why he doesn't ask for Johnny's number when Doyoung mentions he could get them talking, after their prom suit hunting afternoon. That's, in fact, why he finds himself leaning on his knees, sitting at the same bleachers from where Wong Yukhei had fallen weeks before – he's alright, Ten's heard, more hurt by Jungwoo's nonchalance than by the fall itself, but still undeniably infatuated by him –, under the faint sun rays. He doesn't care that it's going to rain soon, watching as the players of the soccer team jog through the field in their post-lunch practice, legs bare beside the weather.  

"You didn't even tell him you were going to show up," is what Sicheng, junior, tells him. His shoulder touches Ten's slightly when he leans in to say that, over the loud chat of the other students on the bleachers. He wears a hoodie that looks too big on him, but the blue makes his peach hair pop out. "He's not even going to see you, there's too many people here, and you're all in black,"

Ten tilts his head to the side, in the direction of the field, where Sicheng finds his own boyfriend – that would be Yuta, nice to meet you – waving excitedly as he makes his way through the other players with Johnny right behind him. Ten shrugs as he smiles. "Bold of you to assume I need to announce myself for Johnny to notice me, Winko,"

Sicheng rolls his eyes hard, but smiles back at him anyway. He digs a bony elbow painfully in Ten's ribs before getting up, holding a hand out to his friend. "Then let's go meet them, huh?"

See, it's not like Ten had been expecting to fall for Johnny Seo, but he wasn't really surprised when it happened. They've always studied together, sharing blankets during nap time on kindergarten, being assigned to the same classes pretty much since middle school – but that's mostly on their school's counselor, knowing all of them for so long that putting them in the same classes seemed easier than coming up with new school plans every year –, and attending the same summer camps and so on. Also, they've always had the same friends, to say so – of course, Johnny had made a home in the soccer team meanwhile Ten found his heart in the dance club, but there would always be someone to make the link, be it class president Doyoung who's Jaehyun's (AKA Johnny's best dude or whatever) boyfriend and also Ten's favorite person to sit at lunch with, or team captain Yuta who's dating Sicheng, one of Ten's pupils in the dance club ("I'm only a year younger than you, Ten," "Worry not, my young grasshopper, I don't care that you're still a seed waiting to bloom,"). Some things just happen naturally when you've known someone for so long, it has happened with most of their friends so far.

The thing is: Johnny had always been the lanky, kind of weird kid with the disaster haircuts that Ten also had like kids their age, but he had burnt the pictures long ago. He listened to songs too loudly, the kind you can hear even when they're using headphones, and had this terrible habit in elementary school that got him dripping all of Ten's iridescent glitter on their shared art projects, doesn't matter if it would fit the theme or not – reason number one why Ten refused to work with him for years, hence "glitter doesn't go well with still life, Johnny, when will you learn?". Ten never really acknowledged him, because he used to have a thing for smaller, soft looking boys like himself, or so he thought, for as soon as Johnny came back from one specific summer break, all broad-shoulder, tanned glory, and he got Ten questioning his life choices at age fourteen before even saying "Hi!",

Four years later, you see, here's Ten – graduating, out of the closet, with a better haircut, with Johnny looking at him the way he has always looked, and that would be _looking down,_ in case you're asking.

"How come you're still so tiny even with combat boots on?" is the first thing Johnny says, when Ten and Sicheng make their way through the cheerleaders that don't look much excited wearing skirts in that weather. Ten scoffs and changes the weight of his body from one foot to the other, aiming for nonchalant.

"Pointing out someone's height is _such_ a turn-off, my Johnny boy. Tell me, were you raised in a barn?"

The eye roll Johnny offers him is cocky, sure, but also followed by a warm smile, so it makes something inside Ten feel funny. He pushes the feeling aside quickly. It takes half a second for Yuta's own blinding smile to block his view before said boy engulfs Ten in a sweaty bear hug. ("Get _off_ me, Sicheng control your animal!" "I love you too, Tennie,").

Between all the chat – mostly Yuta and Sicheng – and the bickering – mostly Johnny and Ten –, they decide on hanging out by the coffee shop crossing the street from school grounds after Yuta and Johnny take quick showers, both telling the others not to wait on them. Ten is not surprised by the choice, for the coffee shop is always packed with students, and he raises an eyebrow at Sicheng when they're sitting in a booth by the window.

"God, you make everything seem like an evil plan," is what the Chinese says, mindlessly playing with the menu on his hands. He makes a motion to hit Ten's head with it, but Ten dodges it. "Stop acting like someone dared you to ask Johnny to prom, everybody knows you've been pining for him since forever. In fact, everybody knows you both have been pining for each other since forever,"

At that, Ten gets shy. He lowers himself on the couch, snatching Sicheng's menu to hide his face. "Not true,"

"Of _course_ it's true, do you want me to get Jungwoo or Doyoung for backup?" sighing, Sicheng rubs his face with one hand. It makes the other laugh a little. "Doie has seen more than me, he can tell data from middle school, but Jungwoo knows all of your little Johnny secrets,"

"Doyoung thinks everyone is secretly in love with each other only so he can say "I knew it!" when people start dating, and Jungwoo knows stuff because he's the only bitch in this house I've ever respected," says Ten, matter-of-factly. He drops the menu on the table, but the tips of his ears are still a little red. He looks over his shoulder to see if the others aren't around yet. "Quick, do I look cute right now? Do you think Johnny is going to buy me a drink, or should I buy him one? I think I forgot my wallet, but I can always flirt with the barista to get drinks for free..."

Sicheng thinks he'll have a seizure soon. He grabs Ten's hands on top of the table and squeezes them. "You're impossible. Stop. I've had enough, Ten,". It has the other laughing loudly, which makes it all worse.

It takes a few more minutes until Yuta and Johnny get there, sliding into the booth with clean clothes and wet hair. Yuta makes a place for himself by Ten's left side, cornering him against the window, while Johnny sits with Sicheng, in front of him. The latter raises both eyebrows to Ten, mouthing a " _Thank us later, you evil witch,_ " that goes unnoticed by Johnny before turning his attention back to his boyfriend.

Ten decides to take it back. Maybe Sicheng is the second bitch in the house that he respects.

Therefore, he does what he does best: watches it as Johnny scans over the menu, a few strands of hair falling over his face, and the way their knees touch under the table reminds Ten of countless study sessions in middle school in which they would gather around Doyoung's dinner table, with Johnny and his absurdly long legs playing footsie with him in between History essays and sharing Biology notes.

"I'll go fetch the drinks!" Yuta volunteers, as he's already getting up from the table. "Johnny, my dude, americano?"

"Yup," he replies, pronouncing the "p" with a loud _pop_. Ten wants to send a fist through his jaw, or maybe kiss him, so he looks down at the menu to avoid staring. When Yuta asks him, he says, "Caramel macchiato without cream," without thinking much.

Sicheng ends up going too, claiming he wants to look at the pastries on the display. When he leaves, Johnny shakes his shoulders, leaning back on the couch, eyes closed. Ten figures he must be really tired from practice, but before he can say anything – not that he thought about something to say, but the silence had him a little anxious –, Johnny opens his eyes and looks at him.

"So, you watched practice today," he says, and Ten hates his grin right now. He pretends to be interested in the sun setting outside the window instead of looking at it. "Since when are you interested in soccer?"

To that, Ten turns at him, smiling. "It's not soccer I'm interested in, Johnny," and he delights himself with the way Johnny's cheeks tint slightly with pink. Ten is ready to go full on flirt mode when Yuta uses that exact moment to plop back on his seat, sliding their drinks over the wooden table.

"Stop flirting, you lovebirds," he says, and it has both Johnny and Ten rolling their eyes, but Johnny's blush looks deeper. Ten high fives Yuta mentally as he takes a sip from his own beverage. "Tell me, Tennie, what have you guys been up to at the dance club?"

Everybody knows Yuta could just ask his boyfriend, who's sitting across the table unwrapping a blueberry muffin, but the look in Sicheng's face tells that he's more interested in eating than telling Yuta something he probably already knows.

"Well," Ten starts. "We've recently welcomed some freshmen. Cool kids, you know, like us dancers are, but there's this one that caught my attention--"

"He's _just_ like Ten," Sicheng adds, and it makes them all laugh a little. "His name is Renjun, and he's impossible. Like Ten was when he was fifteen. Ten's legacy will live on that one, he'll turn him into a living nightmare by the end of the year,"

Johnny's knee bumps into Ten's at that. It almost has him distracted, but Ten takes one more sip from his drink, "I'm going to turn him into an absolute legend! He has everything-- the looks, the potential, the guts. A Generation Z version of me, ready to take over the world. I met him, like, two weeks ago, but if anything happened to him, I could kill a man,"

"As I said," Sicheng nods, as Yuta almost falls from his seat laughing. "Ten will turn him into a monster,"

Johnny snorts. "I don't doubt that,"

They chat for a while, with Sicheng taking the occasional chance to make fun of Ten's abilities as a mentor, and Yuta talking excitedly about their upcoming matches. Johnny stays quiet for the most part – he laughs, of course, sometimes throws his head back in a way that makes Ten's stomach do somersaults –, making comments here and there. He's finished his americano long ago, playing with the empty cup until it's too messy to hold. When Ten finishes his own drink, Johnny snatches his cup as well, and if their fingers touch briefly at that, it's their secret to keep.

 

Ten doesn't really know why he didn't ask yet. It's not like he didn't have opportunities, any way.

He still has some months until prom, of course, – the decorations are still inside boxes in the school's basement, no one has talked about a playlist yet, and nobody is even dreaming about king and queen of prom besides the people that want the title –, but almost all his friends have dates already. Judging by the popularity of the soccer team, it almost has him worried that someone will ask Johnny first, or that Johnny himself is going to ask someone else before he gets the chance.

At thoughts like this, Ten looks at the little mirror inside his locker before class and says, "Hoe, trust yourself a little,". It has Jungwoo choking on his morning coffee, showing up to class with his face still a little red and earning worried looks from their classmates.

But when he's sitting through an insufferable Chemistry class, not having learned stoichiometric calculus in the past and having pratically bullshited his way through this subject the entire semester, Ten looks down at his notebook – filled with Doyoung's notes that he copied last week – and wonders where asking Johnny to prom puts them. Prom is king of a big deal to everybody – you either go with a friend or someone that you really like. And Johnny _knows_ Ten likes him, he would be dumb to doubt that. Also, judging by how Johnny replies to his flirting, Ten guesses it's safe to give it a shot.

But they haven't even kissed. Not properly, of course. Messy try-out kisses when you're fifteen and idiotic, hidden in the basement of your best friend's house to smoke bad pot, doesn't count. Like, not at all – Ten doesn't even consider Johnny his first kiss. He considers Jungwoo his first kiss, all platonic practices and laughing at each other's face because _your face looks stupid this close_ and _you wound me, Jungwoo, you really do_.

Ten sighs, mindlessly sketching on the edges of his notebook. At one point he glances over his shoulder to see Johnny all concentrated in his exercises, one leg propped up on the chair just like Ten sits, long hair falling over his face – he started growing it out when they were sixteen, always keeping a cool lenght on the fringe and making Ten wish he could run his fingers through it.

Johnny doesn't look back at him, but Yuta, by his side, does. He makes kissy lips at Ten, who flips him the bird before turning back to front. And then he starts wondering again.

 

"I like Johnny," is what he says at lunch.

Doyoung looks up from his homemade pasta, fork mid-air. "Do I look like an idiot?"

Ten frowns. "What?"

And then Doyoung makes the face – the one that tells he's going to say something snarky yet very smart, very Doyoung-like –, and points his fork at Ten. One lonely piece of pasta falls from it and a drop of tomato sauce goes flying to Ten's white jacket, as if to prove a point. It makes Jungwoo, by Doyoung's side, snort.

"Everybody knows that you like Johnny," says Doyoung. "As you say, we've been knew. Since, like, middle school. Keep up, Ten, goddamn it,"

Ten buries his face on his hands, lunch long forgotten. "Remind me why the fuck I taught you how to roast someone, please," he groans, then drops hands to his lap, and this time Doyoung smiles at him like he's winning. He is. "My point is: I like Johnny. I never told him. I never even kissed him properly. Now we're graduating and I've lost my time. Ask me why,"

Doyoung doesn't. He looks at Jungwoo, who chants "Why, why, why?" like this is the most exciting thing he's seen all day. It probably is, since he always complain about his Wednesday classes.

"Because I'm a fool!" continues Ten. "I've always been like-- like liking him is a part of my myself, intrinsic, you know? I never did something about it even when I wanted to… Because I don't know? Didn't wanna bother? Always thought he liked someone else every time I gathered courage to do so? I was honestly so dumb. I never tried my luck. Why, younger Ten, why the fuck,"

The other two nod, motioning for him to keep going. Ten furiously bites a piece of his broccoli pizza. "Imagine if I told him I liked him like, in second year. We could have been dating for two years already. This school's fucking power couple instead of Yuta's and Sicheng's stupid asses. Fuck. I'd date him even when he dyed his hair blonde last year. He looked like Donald Trump and I was like, ready to defend him from every slander,"

Doyoung shakes his head. "You wouldn't. I wouldn't let you. Social suicide,"

"Doie--," the other pauses, thinking for a second. "Ok, true. But I'd definitely date him after he went back to black if he-- if he didn't start dating that senior! My dancing mentor who graduated that same year!"

"Oh my, remember that," Jungwoo puts down his bowl of noodles, eyes the size of the world. "It was so awkward. She wouldn't even look at him properly in the hallways. I bet they faked it,"

"Bitch, to be honest, me too. But I cried for days. I couldn't even go to dance class properly because he would always be there, waiting for her. Disgusting,"

Doyoung nods. "Yes, it was pathetic. Ten, though, not them. I still dream of the day Seulgi will say she was trying to act straight to her parents and asked Johnny to be her fake boyfriend. Like in books and movies, you know,"

Ten starts laughing, the others do too, and it takes them a few minutes to come down from the high. It earns them a few looks from other tables, but it's not like no one has never seen someone having a laugh attack.

When Jungwoo comes back from his hunt for ice cream, this time plopping by Ten's side to share it with him, the latter has a frown in his face again. Not even ice cream can cheer him up sometimes, but he takes a bite anyway and says: "I don't know, guys. I just feel like I lost all my opportunities-- now I'm going to ask him to prom, and he's gonna be like, why didn't you ask sooner? Like, way sooner?"

"You know, he's not going to say that," Jungwoo replies, to which Doyoung nods, approving. "I get that you feel that way, but you can't blame yourself. You used to get really nervous about him. Just think that _this_ is a pretty nice opportunity to..." he tilts his head for a moment, then smiles mischievously. "... Snatch emo jock god away for good!"

Ten buries his face in a hand again, smiling against his palm. He feels like he doesn't deserve Jungwoo sometimes. The latter looks really proud of his speech, happily licking the ice cream, so he quickly presses a loud, exaggerated kiss to Jungwoo's cheek.

Surprised, he squeaks and promptly drops their ice cream on the table, and a piece of it slides and falls right on Doyoung's left shoe.

Doyoung looks exhausted. He gives them a thumbs up. "Congrats, you absolute dumb fucks. But, Ten," this time, he smiles softly. "You should definitely go for it,"

 

Ten starts thinking the universe might be shitting on him somewhere along the middle of April, one day when he's sitting on the floor waiting for his phone to come back to life with Sicheng's charger and Renjun's head appears on the doorstep. "Did you invite some jock over to watch us today, or can I go tell him to fuck off?"

" _Language!_ " Sicheng screams, on the other side of the room, but Ten only looks at the younger with a frown. "Who is it?"

"Tall, long hair, a Johnny something. He's having coffee with Jisung right now,"

Ten drops his phone on the floor, and he's up in a second, following Renjun down the corridor of the dance studio.

Sitting in the large red coach that once belonged to Ten's aunt, – she kindly donated it to them, it made them all very happy –, with a tiny plastic cup of coffee in his hands and laughing at something the freshman had said, is Johnny Seo. Ten doesn't actually believe the sight until Renjun nudges him in the ribs and he winces.

He doesn't even know what to say exactly. "Johnny," and then the latter is looking at him, and Jisung too, smiling at him with a mischievous look in his face. "Stop corrupting my son with your jock nonsense,"

"I didn't do anything!" he replies, getting up from the couch as Renjun and Jisung run back to the dance room.

Johnny stands awkwardly in their changing room, clad in his soccer uniform and contrasting with the dance leotards and yoga pants hanging in the clothing rack, as well as Jisung's various ballet shoes scattered on the floor. Ten thinks that it's the best thing he's ever seen, and watches in silence as Johnny discards the empty plastic cup on the garbage can in the corner before making his way to him.

"I came to watch you," he says, quietly. "You went to see me at practice that other day so it's only fair..."

Ten smiles at him, besides his stomach doing somersaults. He motions to the back room. "Let's go, then, we're going through a new choreo today,"

Later on, when Ten plops down by Johnny's side against the wall, chugging a whole bottle of water and starting another before looking at him, Johnny looks fairly impressed. Ten nudges his left thigh playfully with his own knee, and watches as Johnny's right feet taps against the floor a couple times before he talks.

"What? Thought dancing easy like soccer?"

Johnny laughs, and he doesn't even look bothered by the slander. "You dance like you're made of water, it's really pretty,"

"Oh," Ten replies. He stares at himself on the mirror by the other side of the room. His face is red from dancing, and he's all sweaty and dirty, but Johnny is still looking at him. He turns to him and smiles. "Thank you, Seo. Since when are you interested in dancing?"

Johnny snatches the water bottle from his hands and takes a sip. "It's not dancing I'm interested in, you know,"

 

Sometimes people find themselves in situations that have them thinking _everything could have been different if I had been two seconds late_. You know, like when it starts raining the exact moment you set foot in your doorstep, or when you realize you could have been hit by a car if you didn't notice your shoes were untied and decided to fix them before crossing the street.

Ten's mind swims around this very thought as he makes his way to Johnny's old, yet undeniable his, black 1980 CJ-5 jeep.  If Ten had spent two more seconds checking if his phone was inside his backpack before leaving the studio, he wouldn't have bumped into Johnny as he crossed the street.

Two seconds. Two seconds got him here, entering Johnny's jeep. When he opens the door to it and hops on the seat, Ten thinks that the universe might be shitting on him again, that this is all too awkward and he should run away – he keeps thinking that until a voice, awfully sounding a lot like Doyoung's, tells him that he's being an idiot, and that friends give each other rides when it's too late for them to be walking home alone.

 _Friends_ , he repeats, silently, as he watches Johnny put on the seat belt and turn on the radio. They're friends, they're good, yes.

"Everything good?" Johnny asks him, and Ten nods, smiling with his lips closed.

Everything is perfectly good except for the fact that Ten is in love, and he has been for the past four, almost five years of his life, and he feels like he's running out of time more than ever. So he keeps his mind busy with saddening thoughts, and refrains from talking because Ten knows he'll end up saying something he'll regret.

Johnny found him when he was leaving his weekly art class downtown. Classes at night have always been cheaper so Ten had become used to riding the subway past dinner time, he really didn't make a big deal out of it, but the moment Johnny saw him in his way to the nearest subway station – which is like, 5 minutes from the art studio, no biggie –, he looked outraged.

He could've brushed him off. He could've told Johnny to go home and Johnny would go home, because it's not like they're the main characters of a sappy novel. But Ten was feeling a little selfish, so he let him drive him home, and now he's swimming in his own self-deprecating thoughts.

_Nice one, Ten. You're a legend._

"You're so quiet," Johnny says when they're waiting for the light to become green, left hand on the steering wheel and the other on his own lap. He always drives like that, Ten knows it. "Aren't you gonna tease me for my clothing choice or how my hair looks today?"

At that, Ten lets himself chill. Even when he's overreacting, overthinking, overeverything, Johnny is always Johnny. "Don't worry, you always look like a clown, I don't need to remind you of that all the time,"

The other's laugh echoes in the jeep, and Ten is laughing too, and when he breathes, it's almost like the air feels lighter, better inside his lungs. Maybe it's just his mind play tricks, or maybe it's being around Johnny. Maybe Ten would choose the second any day in a heartbeat.

"C'mon," Johnny says as he fishes a pack of jelly beans from the back seat, dropping it in Ten's lap. "Open this and start spilling the tea, I'm all ears for you to rant,"

Ten is never letting him know _he's_ the reason of all of his overthinking – alright, maybe not _all_ , but _most_ of his overthinking for the past years. He quickly searches inside his mind for any reason to be grumpy about, and pats himself in the back mentally when he finds one. He tears the pack open and eats a handful of jelly beans in one go. "Some idiot in my art class tripped and fell on my canvas today," he says, mouth full.

Johnny snatches the pack to himself, fishing the green ones while waiting for the red light to go off. "No way. Did they ruin it?"

"Well, the guy did put his fist through it like it was made of paper," Ten replies. Johnny looks at him shocked. "Eyes on the road, Seo. Anyway, I got _really_ mad. And sad. I actually felt like crying. It was months worth of work, you know. My teacher said I have all the time in the world to submit it now, but I really wanted to get it done before exam week in April,"

" _No way_ , Ten," Johnny repeats. He takes a left on the corner of Ten's old building, and it brings him a good memory amidst his sad/mad rant. "Shit, that sucks. Listen, I haven't touched a brush or pot of ink in years, but I can help you if you want,"

Ten laughs so hard that he hits his head on the window, and Johnny almost crashes his car on a lamp post, and then he laughs too. The pack of jelly beans is forgotten, fallen at Ten's feet. They park on the nearest spot and laugh together for what seems like ages – Johnny actually cries a little, stubbornly brushing off the tears of joy with the sleeves of his hoodie, and Ten, slowly recovering, thinks he's so cute that he wants to cry as well.

When Johnny stops looking like he's going to combust, Ten leans his head on the window again. He breathes out, "Johnny, the last time I let you near an art project of mine, you got us a 3 because of how much glitter you put in it. It was still life. Everyone's ugly bananas on a bowl scored 10, and ours looked straight out of a Lady Gaga's album concept art. A three, Johnny. A fucking--"

He doesn't even finish it before the next burst of laughter comes through. This time, it takes them way longer to recover from it, and Johnny startles both of them when he honks the car by accident.

Afraid they'll end up going to jail for disturbing the city at night, Ten tries his hardest to stop laughing, covers his face uselessly with his hands, pressing the palm to his mouth. When he comes back from it, the car nor silent except for their shaking breaths, Johnny is looking at him.

Ten suddenly can't take it anymore.

"Johnny, Johnny Seo, Johnald, listen to me,"

"What is it?"

"Go to prom with me," he blurts out, and widens his eyes when realizing what he's done.

When Johnny leans his head on the steering wheel, face hidden in the crook of his elbow, Ten prepares himself to take it back. He's about to get rejected, he's wondering if jumping out of the car right now will look too weird and--

And suddenly Johnny shifts, and suddenly Johnny is looking at him with his big, still watery eyes and he _smiles_ – an idiotic smile, with a ghost of a laugh hanging on it, and Ten wants to wipe it off with a kiss. Hhe physically holds the edges of his seat to stop himself.

His heartbeat beats oud in his ears. Ten wants it to stop, but he waits.

"It would be an honor going to prom with you, Tennie,"

He breathes out. " _Thank fuck_ , I mean... you know what, THANK FUCK--"

 

Contrary to popular belief, they're not dating.

That's what Ten tells himself at least three times a day since he asked Johnny to prom, barely four weeks before – once when he wakes up and there's a text from Johnny on his cellphone with the latest meme he had found as a good morning text, then once more when one of their friends talk about them like they're boyfriends during lunch and Johnny doesn't even bat an eye, and then one last time when he has Johnny's back pressed to a supporting column under the bleachers, hidden from everyone else, and Ten is kissing the living hell out of him.

This, for a matter of facts, isn't their first kiss. They had their proper, amazing first kiss somewhere along the two following weeks to the proposal ("Please, stop saying that, it sounds like you asked Johnny in marriage," "Doyoung, I just _might_ ,") when Johnny had a get together at his place – he's been living by himself since the end of February, around Ten's birthday, when his parents decided to give him a try to see how college would look in the future. Ten felt like he had been sitting in that couch for years, watching as Jungwoo tortured the poor Lucas, Yukhei something, the _kid_ by kicking his ass on FIFA. For all Ten knows, having an opportunity to play video game with your crush is a big step, but the expression on Yukhei's face told him he was torn between being completely in love and extremely mad.

 _Life be like that sometimes,_ is what Ten told Johnny when he got up to get more chips. _Gladly we'll skip that part_ , is what Johnny replied, to which Ten only laughed – little did he know, honestly –, pressing an innocent peck to Johnny's lips like they had been doing it for ages. It took about three seconds for Johnny to pin him against the counter, mouth on his, and around five seconds for Doyoung – bless his soul – to come get the chips and close the doors to the kitchen.

"You know," Ten comments against his mouth, because he always feels a little stupid when he's around Johnny. Osmosis, or something like that. "I can't stop thinking about kissing you even when I'm already kissing you,"

Johnny looks at him with crossed eyes for a moment, very cute, before he pushes Ten back a little. His lips are puffy, bright red, and Ten pats himself in the back mentally for the good work. "I never know if you're flirting with me or just talking shit. Like, I've been wondering this for the past ten years of my life or so,"

Pecking him on the mouth one more time, Ten says "Both is good, Johnny boy," and pulls off completely, fixing his coat. He watches as Johnny runs a hand through his own hair and then through Ten's, fixing his fringe.

"Your hair is getting long,"

Ten nods, and if he leans against his touch, nobody will ever know. "Remember our bowl cuts?"

The memory has Johnny smiling. He pushes himself off the column and towers over Ten, hands on his hips. "As if I could ever forget the tragedy. Thank you, though,"

"For what, exactly?" Ten asks confused, over the bell that rings, a sign that they have five minutes to get back to class.

"You looked so much uglier that nobody even commented about _my_ bowl cut,"

If they get back to class in incredible two and a half minutes, Johnny's lungs almost failing as he lets himself fall on his seat, it's only because Ten threatened to actually beat his ass to hell and back and had chased him all the way to class. They both look terrible – skin red, lungs hurting, lips still a little sore and puffy –, but Johnny has a smile on his face that makes it look like he has just won the best race of his life.

When Jungwoo asks about it, Ten only nods furiously. "Go to prom with me, Jungwoo. I'm going to kill Johnny as soon as this class ends,"

"Ten," he replies, with a frown. "You're not supposed to kill your boyfriend. I already told you that's not how it works,"

"He's _not_ \--" Ten replies, loudly, which earns him an angry look from the Geography teacher. "Sorry," then, he ducks his head, motioning for Jungwoo to get closer. "He's not my boyfriend, alright?"

Jungwoo looks at him like he's grown two heads. "Ten, when two people kiss on a daily basis--,"

"But I didn't ask!" he whispers, exasperated. He glances back at Johnny, who's currently sipping from Yuta's water bottle, oblivious to their discussion. "Neither did he. We're not dating. We're… The same. Except we kiss a lot. We're..."

"Dating," Doyoung says, leaning back on his chair. His head rests on Ten's table like it belongs there. "The word you're looking for is d-a-t-i-n-g," and he has such a cocky smile on his face when he says it, it makes Ten want to smash a notebook against his perfect nose.

 

It only gets worse from there, and Ten is sure he's going to end up having a heart attack. It's August, and he just got back from visiting his relatives in Thailand, but no sign from Johnny has him hurting a little – of course Ten has spent time without him before, because every July meant Thailand since he as a kid, but it was almost insufferable. They kept texting each other the entire time, and Ten still thinks this must be a dream, or a sick joke from the universe.

He kind of got used to the kisses and snuggles and stuff. He's not sure how he's gonna survive next summer – _if_ there's a next summer with Johnny, but Doyoung told him to be more positive so that's what Ten is doing.

Johnny went to his visit his grandmother in Chicago the week before, but he's supposed to get back today. "I'll text you as soon as I land!" he said over Facetime – when Ten mentioned to Sicheng, during dancing, that they were Facetiming the whole school break, the other almost threw up. Ten smiles when thinking of it ever since –, but it's noon already and Ten's inbox is empty if not for Jungwoo's cute emojis to cheer him up.

"I'm pathetic," he mutters to himself, not that anyone will hear him anyway. He's sitting alone at a table in the local library, books and notepads scattered across the top of it. "No, the fuck, I'm not--"

The librarian sends him a _shhh_ , and he rolls his eyes before getting back to History. He looks at his notes and sighs. Finals are coming, and this is the last August exam week of his life – Ten is starting to get emotional over the end of school lately –, so the sight of his handwriting makes him a little sad.

He goes through his notebook until a blank page, and starts doodling a headline.

**18 YEAR OLD BOY DIES FROM LOVING TOO MUCH: IS THIS THE PICTURE OF A CLASSIC MILLENNIAL LOVE OR WAS TEN CHITTAPHON BORN FOR THE DRAMA?**

**CHECK SECOND PAGE FOR THE WHOLE ARTICLE!**

It looks decent. Ten smiles proudly, but he still thinks he's going to die.

See, it's not like he's been in love with Johnny for so long that he doesn't even remember what it's like not liking him – wait, it's exactly that. He likes Johnny. A lot. He likes liking him too, likes the way his tummy gets all warm when Johnny's pinky finger is interlocked with his as they walk through the school's corridors, likes kissing Johnny's cheek when he finds him before practice. He likes the kisses in general, but on top of all that, he likes talking to Johnny about everything at any time because he doesn't feel like he's being a nuisance anymore.

When Ten thinks of it, he realizes Johnny has always been listening to him, just like he has always been listening to Johnny as well. This happening ever since they were kids, probably, but at some point Ten got busy overthinking every single one of his actions and failed to notice that during all the time he was waiting for Johnny, Johnny was already there.

(That's what he hold him one day, when Ten was sitting on his bed and Johnny had just gotten out of shower. Droplets of water flew on Ten's face as he shook his head, and when Ten stopped complaining, he said exactly it: "You know, everybody talks about how you've always been waiting on me, and I think it's funny. I was always there for you, Tennie. Literally. You're just a little off in the head, I guess," "Wow, Johnny, you do know how to make a guy feel special, don't you?")

Ten crosses his arms on top of the table and tucks his head on them. He wonders if neither of them has talked about the B word before because the B word seemed meaningless when looking at the big picture.

He sighs. straightening his back. His phone finally lights up with a message from **my Johnald apparently** , and Ten thinks they're gonna be just fine.

 

Surprisingly, it's Johnny who first acknowledges the elephant in the room. When Ten is climbing onto the passenger seat of his jeep after art class – it became an habit, Johnny picking him up after class, them getting late night McDonald's sometimes just because –, he pecks him on the mouth and pops the question like he's asking about the weather.

"You're my boyfriend, right?"

Ten is taken aback for a few seconds. He puts on his seat belt. "I was going to ask you the same, to be fair honest,"

With fingers drumming on the steering wheel, Johnny shrugs. "I thought we were-- I _thought_ we were boyfriends. I know neither of us asked, but who does these days? And when I came to see you at the studio after that first time, and that Renjun kid said "Ten, your boyfriend is here", you didn't even blink so I was like oh, alright--"

Ten promptly shuts him up with a kiss, and Johnny whimpers softly against his lips. He thinks about all the times he wanted to do that in the past years, and smiles in the middle of it. Johnny runs a finger through his hair, settling on the back of Ten's neck, and doesn't waste time before licking into his mouth.

(The thing about Johnny is that he kisses him like he means it. Ten has always heard – sadly, actually, because he wishes he was the one saying it – that Johnny is one hell of a kisser, but he doubts that he has ever kissed someone like he kisses Ten. It makes his insides go all warm and a little bit crazy, toes curling inside his shoes.

Johnny kisses him like he means every second of it. As a way of saying thank you, Ten always kisses with the fire of a thousand suns, like every great revolution in History has always began and ended at Johnny's lips.)

"So, we're boyfriends," Ten says just to make sure, later on, with his mouth full of fries and vanilla milkshake. Johnny makes a disgusted face while sipping his Diet Coke, actually making a little bit of it drip down his chin.

He dries it in one motion, "Unfortunately,"

"Suck my dick, Johnny Seo," Ten replies, with a scowl.

"Well, you can't say I haven't been trying..."

Ten punches his arm so hard his beverage goes flying out of the window. Johnny makes him pay for another one.

(The first time Johnny sucks his dick, it's not inside the jeep – never suck dick inside a car, please –, but Ten likes it anyway. Loves it, in fact. He stars thinking that Johnny sucks dick like he was born for it, even comments it sometimes to make Jungwoo's face go red, but if someone else asks, Ten didn't tell you that. His stupid boyfriend will never shut up if he ever hears about it.)

 

"Do you think my butt looks cute in this pair of pants?"

"Your butt always looks cute, Jungwoo,"

Jungwoo sighs deeply, finishing buttoning up the buttons at the side of his trousers. The suit this time is still navy blue, but a velvety-looking one. Ten picked it out for him to match his recently-dyed grey hair. "True," he ends up saying, and Doyoung rolls his eyes so hard he actually stumbles back a little, and Ten has to hold his hips in place.

When Ten looks in the full-boy mirror of the changing room, there's only one word he can think of.

"Rich," he says. "We look so fucking rich, they won't even need to order food to prom because we, gentlemen, are looking like whole--"

"Stop talking," says Doyoung, hands inside the pockets of his cream suit as Jungwoo finishes fixing his black tie. "I beg you,"

Ten winks at him through the mirror. "Meals," he says at last, and Jungwoo's laugh echoes through the changing room as Doyoung groans.

When his mother mentioned a formal dressing store that belonged to a friend of hers, Ten thought they'd end up looking like his uncle who showed to his daughter's wedding wearing clothes from the 18th century. But now, as he plays with the black, shiny buttons on the sleeves of his burgundy suit, and as Jungwoo looks pretty satisfied with the navy blue one, he thinks that it might have been a better idea after all. He's going to buy his mom flowers and take her to dinner – AKA Panda Express, but nobody's complaining.

When they're already inside Doyoung's car, the suits carefully resting in the backseat with Jungwoo, Ten takes his shoes off and pushes his knees to his chest, furiously texting Johnny about how hot he looks in the suit he found, he's not going to believe it. Doyoung stopped complaining about car safety long ago, so he just motions for Ten to put on the seat belt and starts the engine.

"Say hi for emo jock god for me?" Jungwoo asks, resting his chin on the back of Ten's seat. The latter leans back and pretends he's going to kiss him, but Jungwoo doesn't even blink. "No, no, I already told you, I'm kind of with Yukhei now, Ten."

"Kind of," Doyoung echoes. He snorts. "You're so mean. Are you feeling bad because he's a sophomore and you're graduating?"

Jungwoo shakes his head, leaning back on his own seat. When Ten turns back to look at him, he looks a little upset, so he touches Jungwoo's knee with one reassuring hand. "It's just that his parents don't know about-- _him_ , you know. They travel a lot and everything was good but they're here now and Yukhei is kind of terrified of coming out,"

Ten widens his eyes. "Will they be here for prom? How are you gonna go with him now?"

"That's, like, the smallest of problems, Tennie," Jungwoo sighs. "They won't be here, though. They're just staying for a few more weeks. But it's insufferable because they kind of have ears and eyes everywhere, you know. That's why I don't go around saying I'm dating Yukhei,"

Doyoung looks at him through the rearview mirror. "Sorry, Woo, I didn't know. I hope things work out for Yukhei,"

"Yeah, everything's gonna be fine!" Ten says, smiling. It makes Jungwoo's mood brighten a bit. "Soon enough our baby queer Yukhei is going to be free from his poop-faced parents' outfashioned opinions. But we all are here for him, alright? Will you tell him that for me?"

"Yeah," Jungwoo smile wide. He grabs Ten's hand and squeezes it. "I will!"

 

Maybe it's how Halloween is long gone and all that's rest in Ten's candy bowl is the disgusting candy corn, or how the last exam week ever that takes place by the end of November is just around the corner, making everyone's mood a little bit off because of the end of school, so when things start going to shit, Ten can't stay he's taken by surprise.

There are little droplets of rain racing down the jeep's window, and Ten's eyes follow them as he says "I'm sorry saying that thing, back in Yukhei's house,". Beside him, Johnny's hands are both on the steering wheel, but he didn't start the engine yet.

"No, you're not,"

"I am," Ten repeats, now looking at him. "I just wanted to light up the mood and didn't think it through. I'm really sorry, Johnny,"

Johnny sighs as he stubbornly presses the sleeve of his hoodie against his eyes, and it makes Ten's heart drop to the floor. He's made Johnny cry – not because of laughter, not because he put on a really sad movie on Netflix, but because of something he said. He feels like punching himself, but waits for Johnny to keep talking, because he's gonna. "You just gotta think before saying shit, Ten. You can't just tell Yukhei to _screw his homophobic parents, go live with Jungwoo_ , when he's only 16 and you _know_ how Yukhei is, he really takes things seriously and-- you know that when _I_ did that it almost cost me everything back then,"

"I didn't know you were going to be upset. I truly didn't think of it, and it's not like your parent's haven't changed, Johnny, they've learned so much-- _you've_ learned so much as well. I didn't think that would upset you,"

Johnny snorts, and he dodges it when Ten raises a hand to brush a tear off his cheek. "Yeah, because you never think of anything that doesn't concern you, do you?"

Retreating the hand, Ten leans back on his seat, mouth a thin line. He ponders for half a second and crosses his arms. "This is not about Yukhei's situation anymore, is it?"

"I-- I don't know," Johnny stares at his own hands on his lap, closing and stretching fingers repeatedly. "But I know _you_ since we were little and sometimes-- sometimes I can't keep up with you,"

Silence falls upon the jeep, and all Ten can hear is the sound of the rain and the sound of his own heart beating in his ears. He waits until his throat stops threatening to close before talking again. "I never asked for you to keep up with me, Johnny,"

"There was no need. I wanted to,"

"Wanted?"

" _Want_ ," Johnny sighs. "Don't analyze everything I say,"

"Then don't say things you don't mean to," Ten's laugh sounds harsh, lacking warmth, and this time Johnny actually looks at him, watery eyes matching the other's. "Or should I say, think before saying shit,"

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"I'm not doing anything. Apparently, I never do,"

"Don't twist my words, Ten,"

"And _now_ you're worried about what you're saying, I see,"

He's crying now. They both are. Johnny doesn't even say anything, drying his tears furiously before starting the engine. After a few minutes, or ages, or years, Ten's throat is hurting when he asks "Where are we going?", gaze fixed on his window, recognizing the stores and houses passing by.

"Your house," Johnny replies, but his eyes are always on the road.

"I thought we were going to yours?"

"Thought," he repeats, and Ten gets it.

He doesn't bother saying goodbye after closing the jeep's door when Johnny parks on his driveway.

 

The second half of November flies by, and Ten gets mediocre grades on his final exams, but it's not like anyone's going to hold him back for that. He doesn't even attend the last week of school in December, having locking himself in his room as soon as he left the last exam back in November.

He hasn't talked to Johnny ever since what happened in Yukhei's house. He still doesn't know how a get together could end so badly, but his eyes start watering every time he thinks about messaging Johnny, so all Ten does is hide under his covers and watch Netflix until his laptop's power runs out.

His mom doesn't question it, and his dad leaves leftover pizza – cold, the way he likes it – at his bedside table whenever he cans. In the first days, Ten's phone was bombarded by Jungwoo and Doyoung, and even Renjun (" _hyung u want me to beat his ass for u??? im kidding. or not. anyways we miss u so much u should come over so u, sungie and i can finish that choreo!! we love u_ "), but soon they realized Ten wasn't really in the mood for talking.

He hasn't been in the mood for talking for a long time. His phone had fallen under his bed a week before, and Ten didn't even bother picking it up until today. It's charging now, but he's disabled the notifications for everything and everyone but Jungwoo, who periodically sends him supportive memes and heart emojis, and asks him how he's going. Ten always says he's going to drown himself in the sink, and Jungwoo bombards him with even more supportive memes.

Sitting by his window, Ten mindlessly sketches the tree in front of his house, not really putting much effort into it, but he ends up liking it when it's done. The sun is almost setting when he sees Jungwoo's car parking in the driveway, and Ten forces himself to look at the suit hanging on his door.

He's not going to prom. That's what he told everyone – as in his mother, father, Doyoung and Jungwoo – when he woke up that morning, but his mother still hang the suit there. "It's too pretty to be hidden inside your closet," she said. Ten snorted at that.

See, it's not like Ten has a problem with going to prom alone. Technically he's being going to prom alone for years – always sneaking with Jungwoo and Doyoung attached to him by the hips, getting drunk and kissing older boys under the party lights –, and it's not like he would be alone when his whole year would be there too. He doesn't need anyone to have fun. Besides that, Jungwoo and Yukhei made it clear they don't bother going as a trio ("I could pretend I'm dating two seniors, that's so badass!" "Yukhei, baby, I don't share Ten with anyone," "Not even your boyfriend? That's so mean, Jungwoo," " _Especially_ not my boyfriend, dummy,"), but Ten doesn't want to ruin their night just because they feel sorry for him.

It's just that… He's thought about going to prom with Johnny a lot. He spent the entire year thinking of it, and the year before that too, and the year before as well. He always _thought_ about going to prom with him. And now Ten can't stand looking at his stupid suit without getting reminded of that.

He sighs, dropping his sketchbook by the desk. He makes his way through the room to stick his head out the door to tell his mom that Jungwoo is coming over, but finds Jungwoo himself already waiting for him when he opens the door.

"Hi, darling," he says, smiling, only to be engulfed in a warm hug. He hugs Jungwoo back and they stand there for a really long time, until Jungwoo detaches himself from the other and smiles to him cheekily. Ten groans. "What are you cooking up in that mind of yours, Kim Jungwoo?"

"Nothing!" the other holds his palms up in surrender, a little awkwardly because he's holding his own suit, the hanger draped over his shoulder. "Can I shower?"

Ten sighs, making his way to the bed. "Of course you can, dummy. But use my towel, I'm too lazy to get you one,"

"On it!", and then he disappears inside Ten's bathroom.

As all things related to Jungwoo, Ten doesn't notice anything until the thing per se is literally under his nose. He curses his best friend's smart ass loudly – Jungwoo sticks his head out of the bathroom, hair dripping water on the wooden floor, to tell him to suck it up and act a grown boy – as he watches a familiar jeep parking on the driveway.

Leaning over the jeep's passenger seat window, or almost falling from it, is Wong Yukhei. He waves at Ten excitedly, and the latter doesn't need to see to know who's driving. So he does the only thing he can – because like every Jungwoo plan, it's foolproof, he doesn't see how he's going to get himself out of it, so of course he's going to make a scene –, which is open his window and stick his head out, shouting "I TRUSTED YOU, LUCAS. GO FUCK YOURSELF," at the top of his lungs.

Jungwoo must have warned him of backlash, because Yukhei doesn't even bat an eye. He gets out of Johnny's jeep – and now Ten properly sees him, sitting there like nothing's happening, and it hurts him more than it should – and leans back on the door, staring back at Ten.

"I can't go fuck myself right now!" he shouts, holding his arms open like he's saying _that cannot do, sorry_. "Kind of busy, see? And I'm here for Jungwoo, anyways, since you didn't wanna go to prom with me too!"

Ten rolls his eyes so hard, he hopes for a whiplash so he can fall over his window, break his neck and die. "You just earned a spot on my deathlist, Wong,"

"You have a deathlist?! Can I see--"

Ten smiles devilishly as he closes his window, watching as Yukhei talks to himself. But then Ten's falling backwards on the floor, face all scrunched up and hands gripping his chest, like he's been wounded.

Jungwoo towers over him, clad in his suit already, and nudges him with his posh shoe. When Ten opens his eyes, he's smiling.

"You're such a bitch, Jungwoo. Never thought you'd stab me in the back like this,"

Jungwoo rolls his eyes. He goes and sits on Ten's bed, patting the spot beside him. Against all odds, Ten does sit by his side, but with a pout on his face.

"Here's the deal," Jungwoo starts, and Ten immediately groans. The other shuts him up with a light punch to his arm. "I'm going to go there, and we all will wait in the car for half an hour. If you show up, Yukhei and I are going to call a cab, and you and Johnny will sort it all out and go to prom like the grown ups you are-- you _are_ a grown up, Ten, I believe in you--, and we're all gonna have fun tonight. Johnny is already down for it, he wouldn't be here if he wasn't,"

Ten's throat feels just like he's swallowed a handful of sand. In a very, very small voice, he asks: "And what if I don't show up?"

Jungwoo cards his fingers through Ten's hair, and he leans into the touch instantly, but this isn't what he's used to. The other smiles softly at him. "Then I'm going to come back here as soon as prom is over so we can binge watch Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood! And in the morning, we'll sort things out. We don't need to, of course, but it's just an idea,"

Ten sighs. "Alright,"

"You in?"

"I'm in, Jungwoo," he laughs, motioning for the door. "Now go get your boy and I'll think if I'm ready to do the same or not,"

Just in case, he watches it suspiciously as Jungwoo pecks Yukhei on the mouth and says hi to Johnny, then proceeds to talk to his date about whatever while waiting for him. His thirty minutes start now. Ten closes his curtains with a rush, staring at it for what seems like ages.

It doesn't take much time, really – Ten takes pride in his ability of quick thinking, you know –, so he hops in the shower and then inside his suit as fast as he can. He ends up stumbling, of course, which earns him a yelp from his mother downstairs when he crashes against the door.

"I'm fine!" he shouts while buttoning his shirt, "I'm going to prom, mom! With Johnny! I'm gonna talk to him! Say I'm sorry!"

"What!" she replies. "Sweetie, that's amazing!"

"I know!"

But then… He's ready. He's using his dad's shiny, pointy shoes and managed not to strangle himself with the tie, and his nails are painted black to match his eyeliner, and his mom has kissed him on both cheeks and he's… Ready.

Ten is ready. And he's terrified. His fingers linger on the door handle that separates him from his opportunity to fix things with Johnny, shaking a little bit, and he's terrified.

"You don't _need_ to go," is what his mother says, careful not to mess his hair too much as she cards her fingers through it, when he goes to her on the living room and sits on the couch, as if his time's not running out. "You can always talk to him tomorrow. But it's your prom, after all. You should go, with or without Johnny,"

"I don't wanna go without him," he replies, voice barely a whisper. "Mom, I bet he's using Converses because he's a dumbass. And I bet he looks lovely,"

"He must be, sure, but _you_ look lovely, too. As always,"

Ten smiles cheekily, and he starts to slip out of the couch after a while. "I think I'm gonna be lovely with my boyfriend, mom,"

"Then go! And don't forget your keys, baby,"

"Mom! Not a baby!"

She rolls her eyes, but Ten is already at the door again. This time, he opens it.

 

Jungwoo and Yukhei are not there when he opens the door to the jeep. He figures Jungwoo knows him more than he thinks and they must be at the school already, getting drunk of cheap punch. Either way, when Ten slides into the passenger seat, he's got his heart on his sleeve.

The first thing he does is take a look at Johnny's feet. Converses. He called it.

"You're wearing Converses to prom," he says, instead of hi, instead of I'm sorry, instead of I love you, because he's Ten.

"And you're wearing shoes from the 18th century to prom," Johnny replies, also instead of hi, and of I'm sorry, and of I love you, because he's Johnny. "Just like your uncle," he adds, and it makes Ten's eyes tear up a little.

Johnny Seo is there, a left hand on the steering wheel and right hand on his lap, like he always is when driving – but this time, he's clad in a beautiful black suit, something that must belong to his dad judging by how it looks a little smaller than it should be, but Ten doesn't care because Johnny is lovely, and he's wearing Converses to prom, and he's missed him a lot.

They say it at the same time: "I am sorry,"

And then again: "No, _I_ am sorry, shut up,"

Ten shakes his head, laughing. Before Johnny can say anything, he blurts out: "I'm sorry for being ridiculous. A shithead, really. I know it sounds shallow right now and I thought of many, many other, better ways this conversation could go, but I can't think properly when you're looking at me like this so, please, believe me when I say I promise I'll start thinking things through. I thought _this_ through, ask my mom or Doyoung, that's basically the same,,"

Johnny shrugs. "I guess that's a start," and when Ten pouts, he smiles. "I'm sorry for making you sad. I want to keep up with you, Ten, or at least try. I've been liking you for a really long time and it sucks that we're at it just now but-- I think _this_ is what matters. Now. And I want to kiss you right fucking now, you know,"

Ten might be crying a little bit, but he refuses to check. "Then do it!"

And then Johnny kisses him. Like he means it.

 

"Stop stepping on my feet, you're going to ruin my shoes,"

Johnny sighs loudly, leaning down to bump his forehead against Ten's as they swing awkwardly through the dance floor. "You're the dancer here, not me," he answers, simply.

There's an awful prom song playing, but Ten's eyes look pretty under the party lights – his makeup is a little smudged from crying and making out inside Johnny's jeep, sure, but he looks pretty nevertheless. When Ten gets on his tippy toes to peck him on the mouth, he's happy to meet him halfway, deepening the kiss.

Somewhere to their left, Yuta fake gags. Ten offers him the finger without looking, but he's probably pointing at some random, innocent person, so Johnny takes his hand and interlocks their fingers to keep him from getting into trouble.

At some point they're standing side to side by the beverages table, pinkies interlocked, watching as people come and go with their dates or friends, tipsy from the punch and pockets full of candy from the food table. Ten swears he saw Renjun sneaking in with that Jeno kid, another freshman, and he spends at least fifteen minutes arguing with Johnny – because Johnny saw _Jaemin_ , the team's new striker, with Renjun, and he's goddamn sure of it, he swears –, only to find out that those two are both dancing with said boy, almost hidden in between the graduates, the three of them looking like they never had this much fun before. "I told you Renjun is going to be a legend," Ten says, as he fills his cup of punch. Johnny only laughs, carding fingers through his sweaty hair.

After some more dancing and talking with other seniors, Johnny nudges him hard when he spots Jungwoo and Yukhei sneaking _out_ of the party, and Ten doesn't even care that his punch has fallen to the floor, wetting his shoes. "Yes!", he shouts, not that any of them will hear him because of the music, "Get your smooches, Kim Jungwoo! Skrrrrt!"

When he looks at Johnny, the taller is shaking his head, grinning over his drink. "What?"

"I can't believe my Lucas snatched your Jungwoo,"

Ten laughs. "Babe, please. He doesn't get snatched. _My_ Jungwoo snatched _your_ Lucas," and Johnny only nods, laughing, because there's nothing much he can do about it. He sets his drink on the table and take Ten's hand, motioning for the dance floor.

They end up just standing there, really, with the occasional back and forth swinging, but Ten's head is resting against the crook of Johnny's neck comfortably, and he could fall sleep if it wasn't for the loud music or Johnny randomly nudging him from time to time, hands digging on his hips. "I won't fall asleep from you, Seo, I promise you're not that boring" he says, leaning back after a while.

When Johnny smiles at him, Ten feels his heart hurt a little. He smiles back, and motions for Johnny to duck his head. When he does, Ten puts his lips to his ear, "Prom always sucks, but I'm glad to be here with you, Johnald. So thanks for being my date, I guess, and for putting up with me,"

Johnny leans back, snorting, his hands still on Ten's hips. "So romantic," he mocks, but presses a kiss to his lips either way. It has Ten eagerly kissing him too, hands clutching the back of Johnny's suit. The latter whimpers softly, leaning back a little. "I'll be your prom date every day if you keep kissing me like this, I swear,"

"Don't you ever shut up, Seo? We have all the time in the world to talk, dummy. _Later_ , that is,"

Johnny's laugh gets lost amidst the loud music and his boyfriend's lips, and Ten thinks it's only fair to get lost in him as well.

(Dramatically speaking, he knows they'll always find their way back to each other somehow.)

**Author's Note:**

> please, don't forget to leave kudos and/or let me know what you think in the comment section below!!! 
> 
> thank you for the (long ass) ride, fellas. 
> 
> ps: thank you johnny and ten for my life ugh johnten is alive and thriving fellas, wig  
> pps: in case you're wondering, sicheng and yuta won kings of prom. fuck heteronormativity in 2k18
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/morktwt)   
>  [ccat](https://curiouscat.me/nctqueer)


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